“Size 6?” Brian mutters, holding up a black corset. “Hm, maybe… Yeah, I think she’s a six. Hope so, if she’s way smaller I’m a dead guy,” he chuckles to himself and examines the lacy material closer. “That’ll do me,” he decides with a grin. “Yeah, size six I reckon.”
“Talkin’ to yourself?” purrs an amused voice and Brian jumps slightly. “They do say it’s the first sign of craziness y’know.”
“Oh I’m already way past that mark,” he chuckles and looks round into a pair of blue eyes. He backs up and realises the girl looks pretty familiar. “Uh, hey.”
“Hi Brian,” she smiles. “You remember me? Carrie. We met in San Diego.”
“Oh Carrie. Yeah, I ‘member you. The tabloid girl.”
“You saw those pictures huh?” she sighs. “I don’t know how they got those. Really.”
“Uh huh,” he dismisses her and turns away to re-examine the corset.
“Looks good,” she comments and he turns around again. “But I woulda thought blue was more your colour,” she giggles.
“Blue?” he looks down to realise that he’s holding it up against himself. “Oh!” he drops it down to the floor and tries hard not to blush. “It’s for my wife,” he explains as they both reach down for it at the same time, clashing heads.
“OW!” they both exclaim, jumping back.
“Jeez,” Brian rubs his head. “You ok? Sorry.”
“I’m fine. You? I’m sorry too.”
“I’m fine too. I’ll have a real headache later but hey,” he shrugs and then laughs.
“Sorry,” she grins and hands him the corset. “I hope your wife likes it.”
“Thanks.”
“I could always model it for ya? If you wanted…” she suggests with a small smile.
“Uh, that’s ok. Thanks,” Brian says quickly. “Well, I better go pay.”
“I guess you had,” she giggles and follows him over to the till.
Brian gives her a long look and then shrugs, handing over the underwear to the assistant. She scans the price tag and looks up at him.
“That’s $60 please,” she says and then widens her eyes as she recognises him. “Uh, yeah, $60,” she repeats, turning red.
“Wow, $60 honey?!” exclaims Carrie. “You don’t have to spend that much on little ol ME.”
“That’s good cos I’m not,” Brian tells her sharply. “Can I put it on my card?”
“Sure,” the girl takes his card off him and runs it through the till.
“You’re buying it for another woman?!” Carrie asks.
“Uh yeah. My WIFE,” Brian tells her with a look, wondering whether she’s finally flipped or just trying to embarrass him in public.
“Oh! I getcha,” she winks. “Best way to stop her finding out about me huh?”
“Huh?! Jeez, you are SCARY girl,” Brian mutters angrily, looking at the cashier. “I don’t know this girl.”
“Uh ok,” she says.
“Yeah, we don’t know each other at ALL,” Carrie winks and pinches Brian’s ass, making hum jump and slap her hands off of him.
“Don’t do that!” he tells her angrily. “Look, I don’t know WHAT your thing is but I would be grateful if you would move it on right outta my face!”
“Jeez, take a chill pill Bri Bri,” Carrie rolls her eyes.
“Don’t call me that,” he mutters and signs the credit slip quickly.
“Thank you. Here’s your bag,” the cashier hands over the lingerie and he takes it.
“Thank you. Bye,” he throws her a quick smile and marches out of the store.
“Where we goin’ now?” Carrie runs after him.
“WE’RE goin’ nowhere.”
“Aw, don’t be like that! I was just havin’ a little fun!” she pouts and he unlocks his car.
“Well, then I hope I entertained ya enough to last your entire life through,” he smiles at her before climbing into the car. “Bye Carrie. Hope never to meet ya again.”
“Aw Brian, I’m devastated,” she clutches her heart and he laughs, shutting the door and driving away. He looks in the mirror and sees her staring after him. The girl was a psycho but pretty entertaining with it. He shakes his head and chuckles.
I stand on AJ’s front porch and stare at the bag in my hand. I debate putting it down, ringing the bell and running like hell but decide against it. I need to see AJ again sooner or later. Plus, he’s my friend and I hope he always will be. So what if right now things feel kinda awkward? They’ll get better. Eventually. I sigh and ring the bell. A few minutes later he opens the door. We smile at each other and I hold the bag up to him.
“Hey Aje, just figured I’d bring back that stuff you left after the party. In case you needed it for the tour,” I add with a shrug.
“Thanks,” he takes the bag. “I’d forgotten all about that. Come on in.”
“Uh,” I hesitate a little and check my watch. “Sure, but I can only stay a few minutes. I promised to help Brian with his packing.”
The tour starts up again in two days and will last just under a month. I’m not particularly looking forward to it cos I’ve loved making a home with Brian and just doing normal things that married couples do. But I guess it will be cool to hang out with the other guys, the band and various people again.
“Okies,” AJ shrugs and I follow him into the house. “Drink?”
“Lemonade would be good. If ya got it.”
“I got everything!” he laughs and I sit at the breakfast bar in his kitchen as he pours out two glasses. He sits by me and we take sips in silence.
“So, you all packed?” I break the silence.
“Pretty much yeah. I just threw stuff in. You know me,” he laughs.
“Yeah, I do,” I giggle. “I pretty much did the same. Brian’s left it to the last minute – as usual.”
“It’s probably because he wants to stay home. He’s putting it off,” AJ says. “But me? Well, I have no life away from the tour right now so…” he shrugs and then laughs.
“It’ll get better Aje,” I tell him quietly and he looks straight into my eyes. It makes me feel uncomfortable. I mean, the guy has killer eyes. And whenever anybody looks at you, I mean REALLY looks at you, you do feel a little exposed.
“Maybe it will,” he says after a while. “Jade, if you’d never met Brian…”
“Don’t.”
“I need to know Jade,” he tells me.
“It won’t help,” I sigh.
“It might. Did you never think, even for a second, that maybe you and me…?”
“No,” I say honestly. “You were always Ali’s cousin and my friend. The guy who loves shopping and could always make me laugh. I never saw you as bein’ anything else.”
“Why did you sleep with me then?” he asks, sounding slightly bitter.
“I was drunk Aje. And I was SO hurt by everyone who I felt that I could trust and you were just there. It was wrong. I know that it was.”
“And then you asked me about it. At the AMAs.”
“I did?” I ask and think a while. “Oh yeah. I did. I didn’t mean to stir things up for ya Aje. Really, I didn’t. And I do love you. Just not in the way you want me to.”
“So, you’re sayin’ you really don’t feel anything between us?” he asks, standing up.
“Aje, I…” I start to respond but he pulls me up and against him, pressing his mouth against mine and forcing my lips open with his tongue. His hands travel down my body and his kiss deepens. I surrender momentarily to his passion and feel my body respond before managing to push him away from me. He stares at me, breathing heavily with dark eyes. “You shouldn’t have done that,” I whisper and push past him to the door.
“You felt it too Jade,” he says and pulls me back to look at him. “You can’t say you didn’t.”
“I didn’t AJ. I felt nothing,” I tell him as calmly as I can, ignoring the way my heart is beating so fast and the wetness within my body. “Nothing at all. Now let go of me.”
He stares at me, paling and letting go of my arm. I feel awful for hurting him but I still turn away and walk out of his house.
I sit on our bed and watch Brian trying to decide which shirts to pack for the tour. After getting back from AJ’s I had calmed myself down with two shots of vodka before joining Brian in the bedroom.
“This ok?” Brian holds up a dodgy zebra print shirt and I giggle.
“Uh, no.”
“Why?!”
“Uh, you really need to ask?” I ask him. “Put it this way – it’s an AJ shirt.”
“I wore it in New York,” he protests.
“And thousands of viewers had to adjust the colour contrasts on their TVs,” I joke.
“Ok, fine,” he laughs and throws the shirt into the bottom of the closet.
“Thank God,” I roll my eyes.
“Why are you already packed?” he moans and I laugh.
“Because you kept putting it off to do dumb things.”
“Cleaning the pool is not dumb!”
“It is when nobody’s gonna be here!”
“Whatever,” he sticks his tongue out at me and I laugh. “You really ok with coming on tour with me?”
“Of course,” I smile. “I would miss you too much. And this house is way too big for one person.”
“That’s true,” he chuckles. “I’m happy you’re comin’.”
“Cool. Hope you don’t change your mind,” I giggle and he walks over to kiss me.
“I do too,” he says with a grin as he steps back.
“Gee, thanks!” I exclaim and reach out to tickle him lightly.
“I have a gift for you,” he steps back with a grin and walks over to the closet. He pulls out a red box and hands it to me proudly. “I hope you like it.”
“Wow, thanks,” I smile and take the lid off, pulling out a beautiful black lacy corset. “It’s beautiful. Thank you honey,” I lean forward to kiss him.
“I hadda guess at the size so if I got it wrong…”
“A six?” I check the label. “Yeah, that’s usually good.”
“It is? Cool,” he looks relieved and I laugh.
“How’s about you finish packing and I’ll model this for ya?”
“Get changed already!” he declares, running back to his case and throwing things in.
I giggle and stand up, unbuttoning my shirt slowly. He stops packing to just stare at me. I wriggle out of my pants and start to pull my panties down.
“Honey, you’re not packing…”
“Honey, fuck the packing,” he pushes the case off the bed and jumps on it to pull me down onto him.